A chill in the outside air wafted through my opened window as I typed up my essay on The Great Gatsby. Drafts were due the end of next week.
I was sure I was the only teen doing school work on a Saturday night, but, considering Carys was my only friend and I hadn't been able to get in touch with her all day... Well, desperate times of boredom call for desperate measures.
The tappa-tap noises echoed around my room as I fixated on writing and rewriting a sentence that wouldn't flow in my first body paragraph.
Daisy's love for Gatsby|
Love? No... not love...
Delete, delete, delete.
Daisy's desire to obtain Gatsby|
But does she know it's her desire? Does Fitzgerald actually position her character that way, or does she just end up coming off like that?
With a sigh, I deleted the whole sentence again and fell against my bed, eyes glued to the ceiling as I tried to write the sentence in my head now.
Over and over the sentences played out in my mind, shaping themselves, changing themselves, when suddenly a sharp shrill noise yanked me from my thoughts.
Sitting up right, I fumbled across my bed for the lit-up screen, glancing at it momenarilty as it continued to ring in my hand.
My brows knotted together as I stared at the unknown number.
Who's this... I pondered.
Warily, I pressed my finger on the green call button and swiped it across the screen.
"Hello?" I hesitantly said.
The distant sound of music echoed through the speaker. "Hey, um... this is Indi, right?" the deep voice on the other end of the line asked. For some reason, the way his voice rose and fell in the sentences was awfully familiar. Though I just couldn't pick it.
"Yes, it is. And who's this?"
"It's Harley."
At once, I sat up straight, awkwardly smoothing my hair down even though he couldn't see me. "H-how did you get my number?"
"Well... Technically from Carys."
"She gave it to you?"
"No... I went through her phone."
The line fell silent as my brain took a couple of moments to process his words before I said back, "Went through?"
"She's... not very coherent right now."
"What does that mean?"
He heaved a sigh. "It's why I'm calling. She's at this party with me and—"
"Why did you two go to a party together?"
"We didn't go together... I ran into her here, and recognised her because you sit with her. But she's definitely had too much to drink. She's been throwing up on the side of the road for the past ten minutes. I'd call her parents, but I didn't know if that would get her in trouble. Considering she's useless to get responses from, I figured the best person to offer advice right now is you."
"Oh..." I said, my heart pounding in my chest to hear his voice caressing my ear—and, better yet, know that I now had his phone number. "Um... yeah, her parents wouldn't be too great about it."
"Thought so. What... what can I do with her? She can't stay here."
"Why is she even there?"
"Beats me. I've never seen her at parties... then again, I've never noticed her until she became your friend so..."
Whatever he said after that became useless sound. All my brain was fixating on at the moment was that it was because of me he knew about someone... like I left the impression on his mind.
"So, what do you think?"
"Huh?"
"Were you paying attention?"
Blinking twice, I then quickly faked a yawn. "Sorry, half asleep here."
"It's only eleven!"
"Um... yeah?"
I listened to him sigh on the other end before he said, "I said, can she possibly stay at yours or will your parents also flip?"
"She can stay at mine... I just... need to check. Hold up." Clutching the phone against my chest, I ran out of my bedroom and to the top of the stairs. "Mum," I whispered at her. It was only her on the couch, entranced by her 80s Western Romance movie, meaning dad was probably long in bed.
"Why are you still up?" she whispered back.
"Study."
Her eyes slowly trailed down to my phone I was gripping tightly. "Study, hey?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow.
I shook my head, knowing there was no time to explain—and certainly was never going to when he was on the other end. "Can Carys stay the night?"
"When?"
"Now."
"Now?"
"She's... not in a state to go home."
At once, I watched my mother's face fall. "Indi, what sort of nonsense—"
"This isn't normally like her. And it's not like she will be drinking here. I think something is up. But she needs a place to stay because her parents will destroy her."
I could see the two sides flashing across mum's face: the side that wanted to offer a place to stay for a person in need, and the mother in her that felt like she had to keep me from riff-raff and potential trouble. Then she sighed. "Fine. Sure. Okay. But this is the only time she is allowed, alright? If she's ever like this again then we are telling her parents."
"Deal."
At once, I ran back to my room and brought the phone to my ear. "Did you hear any of that?" I asked, slightly scared he had disappeared.
"Yeah, most of it. She said yes?"
"She did."
"Great. So, look, the party is around the corner from you. She's pretty legless, and, while I'm sure I could easily throw someone your size over my shoulder and carry you home, I... don't think I'm quite strong enough to walk her home safely in her current state. So could you give me a hand?"
A myriad of thoughts flickered through my head in that moment. One of gratitude that the guy I was crushing on was willing to help my friend get home safely after seeing her in a wrecked state. One of pride that he was careful with how he approached describing the struggle he might have getting her here without resorting to cruel labels. And finally, one of delight that I'd get to see him tonight... on a weekend.
My stomach immediately began to flutter at the thought.
"Yeah, of course. Text me the address."
•❃°•°❀°•°❃•
Mum wasn't happy that I was heading out this late, but I told her I'd be gone half an hour tops to fetch her. I could see the hesitancy in her mind about letting her daughter go into the dark streets. Though I was quick to remind her that night was the easiest time for me to see.
It took a mere five minutes to reach the house, requiring me mostly following the gentle doofs through the neighbourhood as they got louder and louder the closer I got.
As I rounded the corner to the very street of the party, I watched a shadowy figure in the distance move to a stand from his place in the gutter. Then he raised a hand, giving me a slight wave.
I returned it, quickening my pace as I neared.
Donning dark ripped jeans and a dark, fitted shirt, my heart was quick to start jumping for joy as I neared him. Especially when the scent of his cologne hit my nose.
"Evening," I stupidly said, filling the silence.
A small grin stole his face as he looked at me like I really was that much of a dork. But, thankfully, he didn't say anything on the matter. "Put one arm around her and I'll take the other side."
At once, we both rounded Carys, leaning over to yank her to a stand. I slipped my right arm around her body as Harley took her other side. But as our arms wound around her, I could feel his arm brush against mine.
Face forward, I was glad that the movies told me red cheeks were invisible to the night. Only now was I sure that I was safe in the darkness, so long as I kept my expression neutral.
"I wonder why she came," I said as we started moving, Harley not saying a word.
"Who knows... maybe she's escaping something."
"Is that why you came?" I tried to glance at him around Carys, though it was difficult.
He kept his gaze forward. "There's many reasons I came."
"Such as?"
But he didn't respond to my question. Instead, the call of curlews filled the space as we took more awkward steps forward. Until he said, "Nice pjs."
"Oh, shut up. You called me out pretty late and I couldn't be bothered changing."
"But pink fleece pants?"
"They're pink?" I said back, glancing down at my bottoms. "Huh. Now I know."
"You didn't?"
"You already forgetting the part where I said I can't see colour?"
"No, just..." He went quiet, brows pulling together for a while as he took some moments to think through his words. "Just thought someone would tell you the colours. Then again, what use is it? Someone says it's pink and you only know from word of mouth that it's a bright colour? You'd have no clue..." He sighed. "I'm sorry, Indi."
"Sorry?" I gaped. "That I can't see like you can?"
"Not exactly... that I'm yapping on about this like I have any clue, really."
"You're allowed."
"I'm sounding ignorant."
"Perhaps, but... Only through asking questions can we learn."
"I guess..."
Though bats flying overhead filled the night air for another few awkward steps ahead.
"Was Lara at the party?" I stupidly asked.
"I think so."
"You think?" I shot him a raised eyebrow around Carys.
But Harley merely shrugged. "I don't check where she is all the time."
I heaved a sigh. "You don't make dating sound fun."
He barked a laugh. "You mean dating me wouldn't be fun."
"I never said that..."
Our footsteps echoed on the asphalt as another conversation trailed off into the night.
But then Carys let out a groan. "Where are we going?" she mumbled.
"To mine," I said back.
Her head lolled to the side as she looked at me. Face lighting up, she exclaimed, "Indi, my dear! My bestie forever! How did you get here?"
"Harley called me," I explained.
At once, her head whipped around, feet still moving in unison—well, stumbling with our tugs forward—with ours. "Harley... how did you get here? And when?"
"Been walking you this whole time with Indi."
"Who came first? You or Indi?"
"I did. Found you at the party and called your friend."
"Hmm," she said, leaning close to Harley as she looked him up and down.
"What?"
"I don't trust you."
"That's kind to say to the guy walking you home and making sure you're away from other drunken idiots."
"Carys," I hissed at her. "Stop being rude."
"I'm not being rude!" she sighed. "I'm just looking out for you."
"Yeah, well... I'm fully capable of picking my own friends, Carys."
"Yes, yes. But you're not capable of choosing who you see in colour."
My eyes blew wide as I glanced across at Harley.
Though he quickly came to a stop, pulling Carys and I also to a halt.
"See in colour?" he asked, turning to glance at us.
"It's nothing," I quickly mumbled, looking anywhere but him.
But Carys, in her intoxicated state, apparently didn't get the 'shut-your-face-right-now-before-you-say-too-much memo'. "For the first time ever in my girl Indi's life, she can see someone in colour."
"She can?" Harley pressed. I could feel his gaze burning into me. But I couldn't bring myself to look up.
"Mhmm," Carys hiccuped.
"Who?" he then asked, his tone suggesting he already knew... and almost sounding, dare I say it, eager?
"You, obviously, Mr Brooks. You add a touch of colour to my girl Indi's life and it worries me."
"As in, colour-colour? Like real colour?"
"We really need to keep going," I then said back, interrupting their back and forth. "I told mum I'd be back in half an hour, and she's going to start worrying soon."
Harley seemed to, somehow in his trance of glancing at me in disbelief, at least hear the urgency in my tone. At once, we were off walking again, dragging Carys along with us as we rounded the corner of my street.
It wasn't until we arrived at my house and he released his grip of my friend that he turned to face me.
"Well, I better get her inside. Thanks for your help," I said, already starting to turn with Carys still gripping onto me—though a little steadier on her feet.
"Indi... can we talk about what Carys said?" he then asked.
"Not right now, okay? I need to get her inside without waking my father and the neighbourhood."
He gave me a curt nod, but then shoved his hands in his pockets, making no move to leave.
I pivoted my best friend and I on our heels, starting to head towards my front door. But as we walked away from Harley, I couldn't help but call over my shoulder, "You have my number now. Text me, if you want."
Just before the flames began to lick my face in shock that I even said such a phrase, I turned forward and scurried away, not daring to look back.
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